Join Us in Preserving Athens History!

 Memorial Gifts

Please consider making a gift to Historic Athens to honor a family member or friend whose life has been touched by the foundation. Providing a gift establishes a living tribute that allows you to honor a loved one or yourself, support our continuing efforts, and receive a personal financial benefit from your contribution. The Historic Athens will accept gifts made in memory of deceased family members, friends, or loved ones (memorial gifts) as well as gifts made in honor of living individuals (honorary gifts). Memorial gifts are often made in response to announcements in obituaries or memorial service programs. Honorary gifts are often made in recognition of personal or professional accomplishments or important life occasions such as birthdays or retirements. Such gifts may be designated for restricted or unrestricted use by the foundation. The financial benefits of a memorial gift include an income tax deduction and possible elimination of capital gains tax.

In the case of memorial gifts, Historic Athens will notify the deceased’s family members of your gift. Please provide the names and addresses of all those you wish notified. In the case of honorary gifts, the foundation will notify the honoree. Please provide the name and address of the person you wish to honor.

 Planned Giving

 Planned giving is a unique philanthropic tool that allows you to promote Historic Athens while at the same time fulfilling your own financial objectives. It will allow you both to maximize your estate for your heirs and to make a substantial gift to the foundation. Planned gifts, commonly referred to as deferred gifts, are estate management tools provided by the Federal Tax code in which the donor parts with the asset today to receive the income and tax benefits, while the actual gift of the asset to Historic Athens is deferred for a period of time, often the lifetime of the donor.

Planned gifts come in two general categories: life income gifts and estate gifts. Life income gifts provide either an income or the use of some assets for the duration of the donor’s life. Examples of life income gifts are charitable remainder trusts wherein assets are placed in the trust from which the donor received income and the tax benefits of a charitable contribution. After the lifetime of the donor and the lifetime of a surviving beneficiary, if desired, the corpus of the trust will pass to the Historic Athens. Estate gifts are normally associated with the donors’ wills or final distribution of estates where assets pass directly to the Historic Athens upon the donor’s death, affording his or her estate the tax benefits of a charitable contribution.

 The benefits of planned gifts are great, both for the Historic Athens and the donor’s estate. Private donations are critical to Historic Athens' success. The foundation depends almost entirely on these donations. The tax and other financial benefits to the donor are also great. Through a number of methods, planned gifts allow donors or their estates to make charitable gift deductions that can significantly reduce their taxable estate. If you contribute appreciated assets—such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or real estate—you obtain an income tax charitable deduction for the full current market value of the asset and avoid the capital gains tax you would have paid if you sold the asset outright.

The use of gift planning techniques has grown dramatically over the past twenty years, benefiting thousands of charitable organizations such as Historic Athens. Each type of planned gift carries its own complexities, which are best negotiated by an experienced professional.

To learn more about which gift vehicle would best suit your situation, please contact us for a no-obligation consultation. We would be happy to meet with you and your financial, tax, and/or legal advisors to determine a plan that works for you.

Please email tommy@historicathens.com with any questions or concerns regarding other types of giving.